“What is neoliberalism?” The young American student looks at me with faux innocence of the wide-eyed sort. She’s not sure what it is. “Can you explain?” Sniggers precede and succeed the question. With that little question-and-snigger, neoliberal hegemony re-iterates its reach across the Atlantic Ocean to South Africa, by way of that island that formerly […]
2013
Posted inGeneral
Paedophilia, paranoia and becoming strangers to our children
I stroll through the Now We Are Six woods not far from my home in Birkdale, Auckland. Any second Piglet will bounce out. I shall ask him, ‘What day is it today?’ Piglet will squeak, “It’s today.’ And I shall exclaim: ‘My favourite day!’ The streams are laced throughout Auckland suburbia, with bridges over them and thickets […]
Posted inEquality, Tech
Another feminist review of GTA V
My grubby little paws got their hands on Grand Theft Auto V yesterday and I cannot wait until Friday when I can start playing the hell out of it. Having it sitting at home without being able to play it because of late work nights is akin to a new form of torture. To tide […]
Posted inEnvironment, Equality, News/Politics
Peeking under the line
By Aragorn Eloff Earlier this week I received a Facebook invite for an event that, noble as it seems, left me feeling more than a little uncomfortable. Here’s the invitation for “Live Under the Line“, an initiative by the religious organisation Common Good Foundation: “Did you know that there are currently 13 million South Africans […]
Posted inNews/Politics
The Arab first lady’s burden
The woman, yet again, has become a political football in Middle-Eastern politics. One wishes the area experts would make up their minds: just yesterday we were being told the Muslim wife was a voiceless, pitiable creature walking five steps behind her husband … Now she’s an assistant secretary of state — directing and manipulating her […]
Posted inGeneral, Health, Media
A beginner’s guide to dealing with smartphone addiction
Well done on having the courage to read this! Don’t be afraid. Think of why you need to abstain from (or at least minimise) using smartphones and other devices. Make a list of reasons. This will require a lot of honesty. But by being honest you are being kind to yourself and others. These reasons […]
Posted inNews/Politics
A Philip K Dick nightmare
Even though an American is four times more likely to be killed by lightning, there’s no greater bogeyman in the Anglo-American body politic than the homicidal terrorist. It beggars belief that something so statistically insignificant (it has been suggested that the odds of death at the hands of a jihadist, or the like, is one-in-20 […]
Posted inEquality, Gender violence, Lifestyle
Abuse of the sacred
A campaign called “Abused Goddesses” is drawing massive engagement and attention around the world. Initiated by a women’s empowerment organisation in India, called Save our Sisters, which helps prevent the trafficking of women and children, it makes use of a series of images of Hindu goddesses, Saraswathi, Lakshmi, Durga with bruises and cuts in an […]
Posted inEquality
The black double agents among us
By Tshepo Mogotsi “You speak English so well, where did you go to school?” That could easily rank in the top five annoying questions asked to products of the “Model C” system. And when I answer “Hillview High” (a name that has never and will never feature in any Easter Rugby tournament) a dense cloud […]
Posted inEquality
Black to white migration: Why black South Africans are moving away from black
Sometimes I wish my skin were lighter, my nose more narrow, hair that would allow a pencil to fall freely when slid into it, with my forehead slopping back a bit, a pair of ocean blue eyes and cap it all off with the white man’s accent. At least that would make my shopping experience […]
Posted inMedia, Tech
Star Trek, technology and being human
When I lived in the US, I made sure to catch at least one episode of the original Star Trek television series, conceived by Gene Roddenberry in the 1960s, which has spawned at least 10 feature films to date. Had I wanted to, it could have been up to half a dozen a night, on […]
Posted inNews/Politics
Coy Western maidens toy with Zulu culture
Positions Vacant Wanted: 30 000 dancers for an ensemble performance. Requirements: Applicants must be virgins, young and single, as well as willing to dance semi-nude. Remuneration: None. That’s not a classified advertisement likely to lure the modern woman. Indeed, for a dance director in Paris, London or even Salt Lake City, the challenge of finding 30 000 […]